Fifth Avenue Apple mega store to open May 19

As expected, Apple Computer will mark the fifth anniversary of its retail store initiative with the launch of a much anticipated flagship store in Midtown, Manhattan on May 19th at 6:00pm, the company has revealed.

In a teaser on its retail Web site, Apple has posted a running countdown to the store's launch along with a wireframe image of a cube that depicts the hollow, 32-foot glass structure that will mark the entranceway to the underground located at 767 Fifth Avenue at 59th Street.

"Celebrate the grand opening of the new Apple Store, Fifth Avenue," the company said. "Win great prizes. Get a commemorative t-shirt. Be one of the first to experience our amazing new store. We look forward to seeing you."

The 20,000-square retail outlet will be the company's second Manhattan, New York location, joining a similar-sized store on the lower half of the island known as the Apple Store Soho.

Steve Jobs, Apple's chief executive, is rumored to be mulling an appearance at the event. It's been report that Jobs personally designed and paid for the $9M glass cube that will undoubtedly be the highlight of the store.

The Midtown store is also rumored, but not confirmed, to be the first of the company's shops to service customers 24-hours a day.

Originally posted by jacob1vargheseWill he use this event to launch new products?

How about a new Cube? It's time for Apple to think outside the box. They've got these massive towers for the Powermac G5 yet they still give us only two HD bays. If they're going to limit us like that, at least make the machines more compact. Just like the cube entrance to the store is understated compared to the skyscrapers around them, a new compact Cube for creative professionals would stand out from bulky towers, which are sooooo 1990s.

Originally posted by jacob1vargheseWill he use this event to launch new products?

MacBook and iPod ... that would be a sweet event and quite the calculated surprise!

As for cubes, Jobs clearly likes them at some fundamental level. THE cube, this store he's taken so much bother with and of course the rather cuboid original Mac too.

A new cube would be super sweet. Maybe twice as high as a Mac Mini but with serious power and decent top end hard drives. However, I think it's less than likely as the experience from the last time did not prove "optimal". Somehow it'd have to be the king...

Originally posted by fuyutsukithe experience from the last time did not prove "optimal". Somehow it'd have to be the king...

The only reason the cube failed last time was because it was simply too expensive for what you got. People wanted either a consumer machine or a pro machine, and this was none of those, a piece of sort-of-pro hardware crippled by the need to be in a fanless fancy cube.

If Steve made a "pro-mini", with real hard drives, real graphics, real user-accessible expandability, and didn't build it with pointlessly expensive materials, and he sold it at a proper price point, it would sell like crazy.

Dammit, Steve, lots of people want a Power Mac without having to get a very expensive, giant tower.

I agree dak splunder, as I think most of us here do. And I think that will probably happen. Perhaps sometime later this year or next year. I wouldn't be surprised. The demand is and always has been there, and I think the components and strategy are now coming together. I can see this happening. It will be the "Pro" version of the Mac mini. Mac mini Pro wouldn't surprise me as a moniker. Or something similar. I may buy one, to go along with my MacBook. Only thing better than a laptop is a laptop AND a desktop! Or a Duo....8)

Originally posted by dak splunder If Steve made a "pro-mini", with real hard drives, real graphics, real user-accessible expandability, and didn't build it with pointlessly expensive materials, and he sold it at a proper price point, it would sell like crazy.

Dammit, Steve, lots of people want a Power Mac without having to get a very expensive, giant tower.

:d

True, I'd love to see one of those. The Core Duo Mini appeals to me but the graphics and hard drive just aren't up to serious desktop use like the universal Adobe apps when they're eventually out. It'd be a media station, and added to my laptop I frankly can't excuse myself three Macs! Well, new ones at least.

However I'd be no less than amazed if they do introduce such a machine designed around small form factor + user component upgrades. It's not really the sort of thing Apple have done in the Steve II era. Though it's always good to be honestly surprised!